MCU actor had to undergo therapy after participating in Eternals
One of the cast members of Eternals, a film from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) that premiered in 2021, resorted to therapy after the premiere of the feature film. The reason was the poor reception that the production had with the public and specialized critics.
The person in question is Kumail Nanjianiactor who plays the character Kingo in the film directed by Chloé Zhao (Nomadland). The actor commented on the case for the first time in an interview with the Inside Of You With Michael Rosenbaum podcast.
The reviews were bad and I was too aware of them,” said the star, who claimed to spend a lot of time “reading all the reviews and doing it too much.
According to Nanjiani, negativity began to affect their mental health, harm their work and personal relationships. Therefore, he sought therapy and to this day talks to the psychologist about the subject.
Kumail Nanjiani. Source: GettyImages
“It was very difficult and that’s when I thought about how unfair this was to me, unfair to my wife and I couldn’t continue carrying out my work this way. Something had to change, so I sought medical advice. I still talk to the my therapist about it,” he explains.
Eternals received mixed reception upon release
According to Nanjiani, his and Disney’s expectations regarding the release of Eternals was quite positive. The production was marketed as a different film from the rest of the MCU to date, with a more artistic and contemplative focus.
To make matters worse, Marvel promoted the film intensively with the cast, including participating in international tours and film festivals. The studio also removed the review embargo early, which meant the team was faced with poor reception while still involved with promotion.
“When the movie came out and the reviews weren’t good, it was really, really hard for me. And I realized that a lot of my assessment of what I want to do is based on the outcome of what other people think about it,” says the actor.
Part of the Eternals cast promoting the film. Source: GettyImages
Before Eternalshe participated in the comedy series Silicon Valley and the drama Love Sick. The actor is also the protagonist of Welcome to the Seduction Club and has a role in the series Obi-Wan Kenobi.
In addition to Nanjiani, the cast of Eternals includes names like Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Kit Harington, Barry Keoghan, Bill Skarsgård and Richard Madden. The production is currently available for streaming on the Disney+ platform.
